The Transport Ministry has set a target to reduce the number of road accidents during Songkran festival this year by 7 percent compared to the statistics for the same period last year, said Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisit on Monday.

Because of the long holiday break, he said it was predicted that 7.2 million cars of different types would leave and enter Bangkok during the Songkran festival – up 4.3 percent from last year’s figures.

Due to anticipated heavy traffic flow, the minister said he had instructed all agencies concerned to mobilize their manpower to be put on the streets to ensure travel safety, especially on 77 accident-prone roads.

The accident-prone roads include 17 roads in the North, 14 in central region, four in the eastern region, six in the western region, 16 in the South, 18 in the Northeast and two in Bangkok and its peripherals.

The minister stressed that there must be sufficient public transport to cater to the demand of travelers to make sure that no passengers are left stranded at bus terminals and bus drivers must be free from drug abuses.

Travelers can buy short-term insurance to cover their travelling which is good for one-month coverage until the end of April with insurance fee as low as 10 baht and insurance coverage of up to 100,000 baht in case of death or injuries.

YANGON (The Irrawaddy) — For possessing the phone number of an officer in an ethnic armed group, the itineraries of visits to Rakhine by Pope Francis and Vice President U Myint Swe, and police reports of violence in northern Rakhine State,...

"We are totally disappointed with today’s conviction. This conviction shows that we are in a bad condition, despite the appearance that the country is heading for a functioning democratic system, freedom of expression and rule of law"